iBooks Textbooks for iPads, iTunesU App -and links to info about 1:1 iPad initiatives in public schools

There is a lot of buzz about iPads in education. 


I'm convinced that tablet technology will be adopted by schools at a faster rate than anticipated a year or so ago, now that Apple has launched iBooks Textbooks for iPad and the iTunesU app.


Parents, teachers, students, administrators, and school IT specialists, hold on to your hats!

RELATED
Learning Together: The Evolution of a 1:1 iPad Program
Carolyn Foote, Internet@Schools, 1/1/12
The Swiss-Army Knife of Education
Mr. Hooker, The WIFI--Eanes ISD iPad Pilot Project, 10/3/11
iPads in Education
John Evans, Curator
iBooks Textbooks
iTunesU App

iPad for Art: Sketchbook Express, via the Montlieu Academy of Technology, a public K-5 magnet school that adopted a 1:1 iPad initiative in August, 2011.


COMMENT
I have been planning on devoting more posts in the future about the iPad and related interactive technologies for learning- and for fun.  When I have a chance to write my mega-post, you won't be disappointed!

Quick Post: Link to a UX Gold Mine - Official Usability, User Experience, and User Interface Guidelines from Companies

Take a look at a a Usability Geek blog that is a repository of guidelines from an assortment of well-known corporations. I'm bookmarking the page for reference!


Official Usability, User Experience, and User Interface Guidelines From Companies
Justin Mifsud, Usability Geek, 9/19/11


RELATED
Usability ABC


Thanks to Ben Ullman for the link!

GeekDad's Post: The Changing Nature of App Design for Kids (quick link)

The Changing Nature of App Design and Development for Kids
Daniel Donahoo, GEEKDAD, Wired,  1/16/12


"During 2011, I have observed a real push towards app development and digital design for children that is respectful and purposeful - not just a marketing and money making exercise." -Daniel Donahoo


I encourage you take the time to read Daniel Donahoo's thoughtful post!

RELATED
GeekDad Opinion:  We Need a Children's Apps Rating System
Daniel Donahoo, GEEKDAD, Wired, 12/11/10
Moms with Apps Workshop Summary
Moms with Apps, 12/4/11

Quick link: How to use game dynamics in the classroom, with good links, via Edudemic (Jeff Dunn)

How To Use Game Dynamics In The Classroom 


Although the article refers to the work of Liz Gross and her colleague(s) focusing on the use of game dynamics in a large university lecture class, there are links to a variety of interesting resources and posts that address games in education across many settings. This work is part of a research proposal for funding from the Digital Media + Learning competition.


RELATED 
Digital Media and Learning Conference 
March 1-13, 2012
UC Humanities Research Institute University of California, Irvine 
About the Conference (info from the DML website)

"The Digital Media and Learning Conference is an annual event supported by the MacArthur Foundation and organized by the Digital Media and Learning Research Hub located at the UC Humanities Research Institute, University of California, Irvine. The conference is meant to be an inclusive, international and annual gathering of scholars and practitioners in the field, focused on fostering interdisciplinary and participatory dialog and linking theory, empirical study, policy, and practice. The third annual conference – DML2012 – is organized around the theme “Beyond Educational Technology: Learning Innovations in a Connected World” and will be held between March 1-3, 2012 in San Francisco, California."

Keynote: John Seely Brown 
Plenary Panelists: Eleizabeth Corcoran, Renaldo Lemos, Leslie Redd, and Constance M. Yowell 
Conference Committee: 
Diana Rhoten, Conference Chair
Tracy Fullerton:   Re-imagining Media for Learning Chair
Antero Garcia:   Innovations for Public Education Chair
Mitch Resnick:   Making, Tinkering and Remixing Chair
Mark Surman:    Democratizing Learning Innovation Chair
Jess Klein:   Democratizing Learning Innovation Co-Chair 


Thanks to Yasmine Kasbi for sharing the post on Google+!

Immersive Learning for Math using DimensionU Games - new "Play, Learn and Earn" with an allowance component

Take a look at the latest development to DimensionU's interactive math games! Parents can track their children's progress and translate it into an allowance. Students who play the 3D multi-player games show significant improvement in their math skills.


Take a look at the videos below, and check out the website.


DimensionU's National Scholarship Tournament:


RELATED
DimensionU YouTube Channel
DimensionU Website
DimensionU for educators

Off-topic: "Communication technology for human-dog interaction" and "The secret life of my dog: design and evaluation of paw tracker concept"...and my dog.

I was reading an article about interactive mobile video and along the way came across a couple of articles about "human-dog interaction" (see references and links below).  Maybe the research will lead to a solution regarding my dog, Tilly.  She does not want me to read or do anything related to technology!

Tilly's a quirky dog who always drops her chew toys on my lap when I am using my iPad or iPhone.  She likes to drop her bone on my iPad, too.

If I am doing something on my laptop, she will close it with her nose or paw.  If she doesn't close it, she will try to put her whole head on the keyboard. The following picture was taken while I was trying to write this post:

If I can find the time, I enjoy reading technical journals, but Tilly doesn't like it one bit. Here she's trying to take an issue of Pervasive and Ubiquitous Computing from me!

She chewed up the latest issue of IEEE Spectrum before I could read it:


In the picture below, she's chewing a chew-stick and making sure I don't get anywhere near my short stack of Communications of the ACM journals.  You can tell by her expression that she is probably thinking that the journals might make a tasty snack!



Tilly has NEVER chewed up a fashion or home decor magazine, and she NEVER bothers me when I am cooking or doing household chores.  


Articles:

Paasovaara, S., Paldanius, M., Saarinen, P., Häkkilä, J.,  and Väänänen-Vainio-Mattila, K.  The secret life of my dog: design and evaluation of paw tracker concept.  In Proceedings of Mobile HCI. 2011, 231-240.


Paldanius, M., Kärkkäinen, T., Väänänen-Vainio-Mattila, K., Juhlin, O.,  and Häkkilä, J.  Communication technology for human-dog interaction: exploration of dog owners' experiences and expectations.  In Proceedings of CHI. 2011, 2641-2650.